Nightmares Haunt Us
by magicathThedemigod
Summary: Adrien has a nightmare about his mom. Maybe more, we'll see. Title used to be "MORE ANGST MOTHERF****R", so I pulled myself together. Rated T for pain in the feels. And maybe swearing later? Also romance. Yeah.
1. Mom?

**Adrien's POV**

" _Mama! Let's play!" he smiled hugely and laughed. A small boy with golden hair and bright green eyes jumped up and down._

" _Now Adrien," his mother laughed. "Calm down a little, sweetheart."_

" _But Mama…" Adrien pretended to frown. "I'm so happy you're back."_

 _Suddenly, Adrien was 13 again. His mother was far away, fading, leaving._

" _Remember what I told you?" his mother called out to him. "I didn't leave. Not really."_

" _Mom!" Adrien started running. He sprinted as fast as he could, growing claws, ears, a tail. Chat Noir chased the warmth of his mother's voice._

 _He chased the way she smelled of roses, the way she would smile, and most of all, the love in her eyes. She was laughing now, growing farther and farther away._

 _And suddenly he was a boy again. He was wearing a black sweater, a cat ear headband tucked into his hair. He had drawn cat whiskers on his face as well. "Look Mama! I'm all dressed for halloween!"_

" _You're a black cat!" his mother laughed and pulled her son to her. Her eyes glowed with joy and love._

" _No Mama," Adrien giggled and shook his head. "I'm a panther!"_

" _But you'll always be a little kitty to me," his mother smiled and hugged her son tightly._

 _And then he was chasing her again, crying out. "Mom! Mom, come back! We miss you! I-I miss you so much!"_

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

His eyes opened and Adrien stared at the ceiling. Tears ran down his face, soft sobs hiccuping from his chest. Plagg was nowhere to be seen.

"Mom..?"

* * *

See that thing in pieces on the floor? That's my heart.

Just a quick oneshot because Tumblr is AWFUL. (not really tho)

There could be more?

I dunno, maybe something with Marinette.

I'm so sorry my poor smol cinnamon roll.


	2. Broken Kitty

**Adrien's POV**

"Holy crap Adrien! You look like shit!" Nino exclaimed when he saw Adrien's face. Angry dark circles looped under his eyes, and the green orbs themselves were bloodshot from crying. He was pale from lack of sleep, and he had a haunted expression.

"Geez," Adrien fake smiled. "Is it that bad?"

"Bro," Nino put his hands on Adrien's shoulders and gave him a worried look. "What happened?"

"Didn't sleep well," Adrien slunk into his seat and rubbed his face tiredly. "But I'll be fine, Nino."

"Uh," Nino gave Adrien a dubious look.

Adrien buried his head in his arms and laid it on the desk in front of him. He would close his eyes, but he always saw images of his mother in his mind.

A finger tapped his arm, and Adrien lifted his head and stared into clear blue eyes. "Marinette?"

"Are you okay?" Her stuttering was gone, her voice full of real, raw concern. Adrien blinked at her and managed a smile.

"Not really," he whispered. Marinette's eyes grew big and her expression sunk into melancholy as she rubbed his shoulder.

"Feel better," she murmured with so much sincerity his heart nearly burst. She was too cute. _Really Mari, you're too adorable._

"Yeah," he muttered and put his face back in his arms. "Thanks."

"Adri-honey!" A shrill voice pierced his skull and gave him an instant headache. Chloe.

She latched onto his arm and pulled his face from his desk. "What happened?! Are you okay?! Is that makeup?! Adrieeeen?!"

His eardrums screamed in complaint. His voice came harsh and aggrieved. "Chloe would you-"

"Ohhkay," Nino pulled Chloe off the poor boy. "Adrien s'not feeling too hot. He needs quiet."

"Oh," Chloe's genuine concern would've been acceptable if Adrien's head didn't throb. Chloe whispered harshly," Sorry Adri-honey."

Adrien grunted in response.

His friends did their best to keep Chloe away from him for the remainder of two day, though Adrien still felt like shit.

His mom would've said something to make him feel better. But just thinking about it made his heart ache and his eyes to sting. His mom.

He had another dream that night.

" _Do you love me?" Ladybug asked him. "Do you really love me?"_

" _Of course," Chat Noir smiled and reached for her._

 _She flinched away as tears fell down her face. "Then why did you let this happen to me?"_

 _A huge chunk of her middle had been torn away, blood pouring crimson from the wound. "My Lady…"_

" _I thought we were partners!" Ladybug screamed as a purple butterfly appeared over her face. "I thought you_ loved _me!"_

"No!" Adrien shot up in bed, tears again falling from his face. "Ladybug!"

Plagg flew up to Adrien's face. "Hey, it's fine. Ladybug is fine."

Adrien buried his face in his hands. "Plagg, I need to escape these dreams. You have to help me… Please Plagg."

"Adrien," the kwami sounded uncharacteristically gentle and serious. "Transform. Get some fresh air."

"Transform," Adrien muttered. In an instant, he was free from the restraint of being Adrien.

Chat Noir leaped over the rooftops, relying on instinct. And then he spotted a familiar figure, even though it had to be past midnight. Marinette stood on the roof of a bakery, a mug of hot chocolate in her delicate hands.

Without thinking, he dropped in front of her.

 **Marinette's POV**

Chat Noir landed in front of her with a thump. Marinette was so startled she squeaked in surprise. "Chat!"

"Princess," Chat Noir bowed and kissed her hand. "Just wanted to swing by."

He was a good actor, he really was. But Marinette saw right through him. She saw the tension in his shoulders, the forced smiled, the crinkle of his eyebrows. "Wait her a moment."

Marinette went down into her room and carefully took down all of her Adrien posters. And then she brought a second mug of hot chocolate up to the terrace.

"For me?" Chat took the extra mug from her hand. "Thank you."

"What's wrong, Chat?" Marinette asked him. "You can tell me."

His eyes widened and a shiver passed through him. It wasn't exactly freezing, but it wasn't warm out here. "It's nothing a princess like you should be worrying about."

"Come inside Chat," Marinette commanded. "You're not leaving until you get whatever it is off your chest."

She saw him relax ever so slightly and smiled hesitantly. He climbed down past her and she shut the trap door behind her.

He stood in the middle of her room, facing away from her. "It feels like a home. I guess I don't know this feeling."

That broke her heart. "Chat…"

She saw who he was now. Those broad shoulders held an incredible weight. He was just a person, and he wasn't as whole as he let on. There was something in this boy that had broken a long time ago.

"I've been having nightmares," he says, facing her. "My kwami- what gives me my powers- says it's a side affect of being the personification of bad luck."

Marinette gulped. She had more pleasant side effects. She tends to win. She gets her way. But this…

"My mom," he says. "she disappeared a long time ago. And I had this dream… That I was with her again and she…"

His voice cracked and Marinette couldn't resist any longer. She pulled him into a hug, leather tail and all. He clung to her in a way she thought was so heart breakingly lonely she almost cried for him.

"And then tonight," he whispered. "My Lady was killed because I couldn't protect her."

Marinette shivered. He sounded like he believed it would happen; that one day he would fail and Ladybug would die. She she wouldn't, because Chat wouldn't fail. "I _know_ that won't happen. You're too loyal to fail."

He shakes as he says," But what if it does happen. She would- she would try to save everyone and sacrifice herself trying. I'm just here to be her shield."

She felt appalled at his words. "You're _not_ a shield. You're her partner, you balance each other out."

He sighed and it sounded so dejected and broken that tears did start to fall from her eyes. She could tell by the way he was standing that he was crying too, trying not to let her see.

"Thank you," he said after a long time. Marinette just nods into his chest. "I should probably go."

"Are you going to have more nightmares?" She asked softly.

His silence is all she needs. "Nope. You're not leaving yet. You're going to stay here and I'm going to make sure you have happy dreams."

A wave of protectiveness washes over her and she decides that she's going to help her partner as much as she can.

He lets go of her and steps back. His eyes are more red than before, but the venting seemed to lighten his spirit. "If you insist, Princess."

"I do," she points to the trap door that leads to the downstairs. "My parents are asleep, so if you need to feed your kwami or something, there's food downstairs."

When he leaves, she sits down hard on her bed and says," I didn't know this would happen."

"The nightmares?" Tikki asks. "It always happens when Chat Noir hasn't been with Ladybug for a while. Tonight should heal him. Your good luck will cancel out his, so nightmares will be less frequent if you stay with him."

Marinette blushed and looked away from her red kwami. "Well if he feels better… He's really worried about me as Ladybug, isn't he?"

"Since only you can purify an akuma," Tikki frowned. "he thinks he's unnecessary and just a shield."

"No," Marinette protests. "He's my partner!"

"Telling me won't do any good," Tikki says. "Maybe Ladybug should tell him that."

* * *

 _ **I have no idea where I'm going with this to be honest.**_

 _ **(i just want him to be happyyy)**_

 _ **Thanks to anyone who reviewed/favorited/followed.**_

* * *

 ** _~I licked my lips and whispered, "Is this where you say you'll kill me?"_**

 ** _One corner of his lips curled. "If you like," he murmured, a flicker of amusement finally crossing his face. "Though it's gotten far too interesting for that." ~_**


End file.
